TLP Gabriel III/AS build

Stymye said:

hehe , bro you..... that lost me ,, can you post again in english ? I got a kick out of it but have no clue what your saying

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In other words ,a hardened bunker is no match for my builds !

That is pretty funny :rofl:

So i build them to last...or maybe overbuild ?


Paul T

ahh lol ok ,, I don't think you are an over-builder ,, but thanks for clearing that up.. i think you know when to beef up things and when not to ,, that's one thing that makes you one of the top builders on the forum
..imho.

mastering strength to weight is crucial at all levels of rocketry

Stymye said:

ahh lol ok ,, I don't think you are an over-builder ,, but thanks for clearing that up.. i think you know when to beef up things and when not to ,, that's one thing that makes you one of the top builders on the forum
..imho.

mastering strength to weight is crucial at all levels of rocketry

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You should see my HP stuff. I tend to get a little heavy handed ,which is probably the reason I was never a concert pianist (sheesh...I hope I spelled that right :blush: )

Paul T

Got the motor tube and exhaust tube all sewn up.

Not the best of glue joints ,but she`ll hold

As usual ,replaced the stock MMT with an aluminum lined tube, just heavier stock and a bit longer.


Paul T

BT filled and my own coupler glued in.Not a big fan of the kit coupler ,too short and flimsy ,but like I said before ,it will work.

Paul T

Using 1/8" Basswood ,the fins were marked using the kit template and then cut with a small hobby knife.The cuts need to be pretty precise because of the angle of the tail cone.

A good sharp blade makes pretty fast work of the wood.

Paul T

Fins are cut , a little sanding, fine tuning with a small block & sandpaper and some test fitting will have these ready to go.

Sanding bevels is next ,and then the surface next (220grit) then SIG sealer (two coats) and 320 to finish.

Paul T

Paul,
I've said it before you do a great job on these build threads.
Thanks for posting them, I know it's a lot of work!

Eric1 said:

Paul,
I've said it before you do a great job on these build threads.
Thanks for posting them, I know it's a lot of work!

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Thanks my brother !

It may be a lot of work ,but it sure beats working !!

Taking pics is the PITA at times ,but I can`t stop now

Salut !

Paul t

Man, you're putting a lot of work into this. It's gonna look awesome!

qquake2k said:

Man, you're putting a lot of work into this. It's gonna look awesome!

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Thankyou mister :handshake:

I have to learn when to say when and move on ,it gets a little consuming :blush:

I`ll get to "ye olde rocket workshop" today and get this thing done ,I hope ,but alas ,no paint until Spring

Have yourself a good day !

PS- OBTW Jim ,paint being the AntiChrist ,ever try anointing your spray cans with some of that Catholic Holy Water ?You never know.


Paul T

sodmeister said:

In other words ,a hardened bunker is no match for my builds !

That is pretty funny :rofl:

So i build them to last...or maybe overbuild ?


Paul T

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Some may call it overbuilding - but in a good way; strong, light, balanced . . like FOX News but with out all the hot blonde anchor women. So much of the past has been folks buying TLP kits, complaining of the components, throwing away most of it, slathering on a lot of glass, jamming in a big motor and then complaining more of the disastrous flight. With so many haters it is now nice to see some TLP love.

Daddyisabar said:

Some may call it overbuilding - but in a good way; strong, light, balanced . . like FOX News but with out all the hot blonde anchor women. So much of the past has been folks buying TLP kits, complaining of the components, throwing away most of it, slathering on a lot of glass, jamming in a big motor and then complaining more of the disastrous flight. With so many haters it is now nice to see some TLP love.

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I think my first TLP kit was the HARM ,and it was love at first build ,and have never looked back.I have most of their kits ,maybe 75% of them.

I can`t understand why people hate them ,probably have no building skills and need eveything done and cut for them and thus takes away the need to think and problem solve ,and then some people just like to bitch...you know....it`s too sunny outside ,I`m making too much money ,my wife is too good looking.............you know the kind :wink:


Paul T

19 so far with only 2 left to build, and I am about TLP'ed out. My favorite is still the Matra I can't believe its Magic. Followed closely by the Krypton, love it when the stock air intakes give you a whine on an E30, and it floats good too. Most flights goes to the Perseus II at 11, best flier to the Lance and best looking is a tie between the Pershing and Nike Ajax. At 91 total TLP flights, only the Pershing 1A is awaiting repair and out of front line service due to its crash at NARAM 52.

For big sport scale, cheap to fly and build (when they are on sale) and for endless hours of pure enjoyment, chatting nine to the dozen down at the local pub with your mates about all the pit falls and virtues, TLP can't be beat.

sodmeister said:

I think my first TLP kit was the HARM ,and it was love at first build ,and have never looked back.I have most of their kits ,maybe 75% of them.

I can`t understand why people hate them ,probably have no building skills and need eveything done and cut for them and thus takes away the need to think and problem solve ,and then some people just like to bitch...you know....it`s too sunny outside ,I`m making too much money ,my wife is too good looking.............you know the kind :wink:


Paul T

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I'm working on my first TLP, but I like it... I've heard the naysayers and I've seen SOME of their issues (SOFT balsa and such) but really, for the price, they're great kits! Most of them aren't done by any other company...

I think a lot of folks think anything larger than a BP "D" motor requires it be built with lots of glass and plywood and other HD stuff... in short, they think it should be an antitank round. If they can't shove the biggest HPR motor that can possibly fit in the airframe into it and have it hold up, well, it's just a POS in their eyes... It never occurs to them that maybe if you DON'T build something as heavy as an antitank round, that it will fly fine on a smaller (and cheaper) motor... of course it won't hold up to the biggest motor you can shove into it, but then again, IT'S NOT MADE TO! It's a MID-POWER rocket... and yes, MID-POWER does include stuff below a "G".

You know the type... they're the kind that has to shove the biggest motor possible into EVERYTHING no matter what size it is or how ill advised it is... the type that shoves C6-7's into Estes Mosquitoes or Quarks and then complains when they get lost... I've seen more than my fair share of the HPR crowd equivalents... From what I've seen, most of the TLP "haters" fall into that category...

Later! OL JR

gdjsky01 said:

oh and just snagged a 1.6 inch Sidewinder for $14USD off of eBay.

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it was you?? I was watching that. Good thing I was busy at ending time. i would hate to bid against you

glad you got that kit.

-Z

Luke, Rocketry is filled with diverse interests. I am with you. While I love watching pure power, I am more impressed with finesse. 90% or more of MPR/HPR rockets are over built and way too heavy. Pigs. Including mine BTW. But each to their own! I admit I love all aspects of the hobby even if I don't dig on minimum diameter glass slipper s or 90kg M powered behemoths. I like to watch em even if I don't 'get' why they do em.

I just think the science of the space age is cool and rocketry lets me sort of re-live and participate in it. But NASA was never reckless. Risky? Sure! But calculated risks. Not "Screw the Rules" risks.


Oh and YMMV!

The Nike Hurk i'm building is my first TLP kit and I can only go off this one kit but so far i'm pleased. I may be beefing it up a little to much, its just got a lot of shroud to it and I want it to last. I'v been eye several of their kits for a long time now, so i'm sure this one wont be the last. TLP kits are defiantly not a beginner kit and most seem to not even be a intermediate kit. If you are looking for a challenge "This is the place!" And proof that they turn out to be high quality hot looking rockets it's right here. :headbang:

TA

gdjsky01 said:

Too bad who ever runs TLP never participates in the forums. I guess maybe they are too busy, don't like it, presume its a no win situation, something else, or a combo of both.

So does anyone know the people behind TLP?

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The fellow who started it all is Chuck Barndt.

I have a whole write up in an old rocketry magazine ,that I`ll go dig out and post.

But in a nutshell ,Chuck started off by making plans of scale missiles and selling the plans.He then started offering kits and plans and expanded into mostly kits offering more and more.

He used to live in another state before moving to Florida.

I also had heard that Chuck was ill for a time and TLP may have suffered due to this, but he`s back at it.

As you know ,for a time getting kits was like looking for hen`s teeth ,and perhaps him being sick was the cause ,and the fact that he`s probably a one man opperation and cottage industry.

I support the man and what he`s done for rocketry and for ME as a builder and the fact he makes scale missiles ,and nobody else really does and make it affordable.

That`s another MAJOR reason I get enraged (well....pretty angry) when people put down his kits.....no need for that in this small community and no need for that on a personal basis.If it were me and I heard people bad mouthing my kits for silly ,petty little reasons (like the ones I`ve heard) I would be quite insulted and saddened really !

We can never have too many kits manufacturers out there ,so support them all and let them know you do !

I too wish Chuck was on this forum ,that would be fun !


Salut :horse:


Paul T

thobin said:

The Nike Hurk i'm building is my first TLP kit and I can only go off this one kit but so far i'm pleased. I may be beefing it up a little to much, its just got a lot of shroud to it and I want it to last. I'v been eye several of their kits for a long time now, so i'm sure this one wont be the last. TLP kits are defiantly not a beginner kit and most seem to not even be a intermediate kit. If you are looking for a challenge "This is the place!" And proof that they turn out to be high quality hot looking rockets it's right here. :headbang:

TA

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Ahhh, the Nike Herc, the top of the heap! When will those go on sale? NEVER. Boohoohoo!

Daddyisabar said:

Some may call it overbuilding - but in a good way; strong, light, balanced . . like FOX News but with out all the hot blonde anchor women. So much of the past has been folks buying TLP kits, complaining of the components, throwing away most of it, slathering on a lot of glass, jamming in a big motor and then complaining more of the disastrous flight. With so many haters it is now nice to see some TLP love.

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It may be some builders get confused between scratch building and over building.

I had one of my very early over builds, arc over under power once, it was full of epoxy ,heavy nose weight, extra reinforcement and overpowered, typical overbuild . it barely missed a little girl by a couple feet still under power and drilled hard into the ground with a big thud. she was sitting in the grass with her mother well behind the launch area.. you could feel the impact and it was only about the size of a bt-80 v2
It really scared me, and the mother was not happy at all.
ever since than , I have tried to build them strong enough but still as frangible as possible.
and I'm much more critical of checking and rechecking stability

I don't worry as much with the larger far away launched rockets.
but it was probably over-kill launching it from the closer pads like that.
I learned a lot from that launch.There is no doubt,It would have seriously hurt either one of them.. much more than the same rocket build as intended.

Yeah, Chuck went through a really rough spell, back in the first half of the 2000's I think. Farming accident followed by heart problems. No idea to what extent he was able to recover, health-wise.

I've built three TLP kits so far: Harpoon, Sidewinder & 2.6" Improved Hawk. Completely stock, and they all fly well on the recommended motors! The fins are the 'winder & Hawk have been prone to damage... they were built before I'd learned of techniques for reinforcing balsa fins. Three other kits are in my shop, waiting their turns on the bench. However limited access to 24mm composites out this way has them on hold. Hoping CTI comes up with some... "less violent" loads for that new 1G casing!

yeah Chuck sure has had some bad luck , I recall reading he was kicked by a Horse, than some time after that read there was an accident involving a tractor or implement.. followed by health issues.I'm just glad to see he is still up and running, at whatever speed.

gdjsky01 said:

Thanks for the recap Paul! I knew a bit of it. And I have kits that list two different Virginia address', IIRC a Maryland address (could be wrong I am not in the rocket retreat right now ) , and the Florida address.

I know some of the people, vendors I would presume, must be in contact with the owner. Maybe as you say, he stays away just to NOT here all the criticism. Tho that's bad as you should take the good with the bad. IIRC I had heard he was on the old rec.models.rockets. Or maybe they just have 'better things to do' like make kits.

Being a TLP fanboy myself I wonder if maybe I am myopic about the sales. Perhaps they don't sell that well. Dunno... :confused2:

Heck maybe TLP just lurks.

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I know from talking with Dave (IIRC) at Red Arrow Hobbies that he said he simply doesn't have enough time to do the forums anymore... when you're a kit mfg and/or hobby shop retailer, you get INUNDATED with questions, comments, suggestions, and complaints, and simply would get SO involved in all that you wouldn't have a chance to actually get any REAL work done (that stuff that pays the bills and keeps the lights on...) Therefore he said he usually stays away, only occassionally lurking from time to time to sort of "take the pulse" of the rocket community in general... see what's well received, what fell flat, and what the general mood is and direction things are heading, so to speak...

In a way it's pretty amazing that we have kit mfg's like Wes at Dr. Zooch and Carl from Semroc, and some of the guys at Estes and Quest, actually frequenting the forums and answering questions and not just lurking...

Later! OL JR

gdjsky01 said:

So my good man, when do we get to see the meat? By that of course I mean the built up fins?

All in due course? (Or dew course?, Or do coarse? - English really is rediculous you know!?)

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Due course... sou by sou-west, Captain!!!

Some of the terms make a lot of sense if you think about it and describe their own spelling...

Three things that typically constantly trip people up (besides their, they're, and there, and its and it's)-- brake (stop or retro-propulsion) and break (fail or snap in two), and bale (compress into a cube-shaped package-- IE bale hay, cotton bale, bale of dog barf) and bail (to dip water out of IE bail before she sinks!), bail (to jump out of-- BAIL OUT!!!) or bail (money payed as an assurance of appearance before a court to answer a charge secured before the release of an accused person-- Pappy had to throw my bail). Then there's "course" (a projected path or heading, usually of a ship or vessel or person traveling IE plot the course, navigator!) and "coarse" (large or chunky-- NOT fine, IE "coarse thread bolts" vs. "fine thread bolts")...

They say English is one of the hardest languages to learn... teaching my seven year old the finer points of usage, grammar, and spelling, I can see why folks say that...

Later! OL JR

gdjsky01 said:

So my good man, when do we get to see the meat? By that of course I mean the built up fins?

All in due course? (Or dew course?, Or do coarse? - English really is rediculous you know!?)

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Ya can't have your pudding if you don't eat your meat! Yes, I too want to see the fins that can finally tear down the Wall. And if the Gabriel can't do it then Sodmeister's Bull Pup AGM-12C surely will! Pretty air to air, ground to air or anti ship sea skimmers are one thing, but TLP bunker busters will RULE.:horse: